Saved
by saltlickedskin
Summary: He let everyone die, so it was only fair that he die too, to repent for what he let happen; but when Kyuubi gives him a second chance to do everything over, how will it turn out? Especially since this time, Naruto has a few legs up on the competition.


Hi. I'm writing this as a side project to work on when I can't think of anything to write for my other story, _Where'd You Go?, _which means my updates will probably be pretty spastic until I finish the first story. As youcan probably tell, I like stories in which the Kyuubi helps Naruto out in some way :] I'll probably eventually write a story where he's a complete ass and only tries to hinder poor little Naruto's success... but until then you'll just have to suck it up. Haha. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this, I spent a good amount of time on it.

"This is normal speech."

_'This is thought.'_

**"This is Kyuubi's speech inside of Naruto's mind."**

* * *

Chapter 1

Blood slowly pooled around the lithe form of a blonde ninja. Hot tears streaked his face as he stared at the calm of the blue sky during midday.

Everything he had once loved had been burnt to the ground during the trials of war, and all of the people, his people, were dead. He was the last left alive; lying in a field, with the bodies of everyone he had ever known lying around him, muck akin was a mass grave. To his left, he could see a shock of short pink hair, and lifeless green eyes set in porcelain skin, staring straight at him, as if she were mocking him.

_It's too late to save me. You failed; how could you?_

That is what her eyes said, and what she would have said if she could speak to him herself, but alas, she could not; and her eyes remained the color of dull jade. He remembered a time not too long ago when they use to sparkle.

To his right were the remains of his oldest teacher, the man who had taken the space of his father, when he was just a young boy. His skin no longer held the same warm color it use to have; the familiar tan had transformed to a dusty, empty color, with the lack of hot blood coursing through his veins.

He averted his eyes, only to look straight to the face of the sensei that came after him. A lazy, silver haired ninja, whom had essentially taught him next to nothing; but he was loved like family all the same.

His flesh was rotting, if the stench was any indication; he had been dead for Kami knows how long. His body was ravaged with marks and open wounds that had stopped leaking his crimson life long ago.

The dead spoke to him; called him a failure and blamed him for their deaths. He looked to the sky in low hopes to find peace before death finally had the chance to swallow him whole and deliver his soul to hell.

**This is not your fault kit. They were destined to die, sooner or later. **The Kyuubi's voice called to him, but it did not bring him comfort.

"They were supposed to lead full lives, have children, and continue on the legacy of the village. The dead do not live on, Kyuubi; you know that as much as I do." He spoke aloud because there was no one to hear him; no one to call him insane and shun him.

**This is what it takes to be a ninja, you see your friends die, and you live on to accomplish your own goals. **The Kyuubi was, very obviously, trying to convince him to live; to allow the bubbling red chakra to wrap around him and heal his wounds, but Naruto would not have any of it.

"There is no more living Kyuubi, look around, everyone is dead. I have no reason for life, no one left to protect that I haven't already allowed to die." The Kyuubi's chakra pulsed wildly inside of him, trying to free itself in one last effort to live. Naruto's pale form rocked with the demonic essence, his body was trying to allow it to flow naturally inside of him; but his mind tried to keep it locked away. All he wanted was to taste the sweet tang of death, and if he was lucky, meet with his friends in the afterlife.

His mind became cloudy from blood loss, and the darkness was swarming in on him from the corners of his vision. The last thing on his ears before the darkness took him was the Kyuubi's voice, speaking to him gently from outside of his body.

**I'm going to help save you kit; everything will be better soon. We will make it better.**

Naruto awoke in a place not quite real, with a fairly foggy memory. It felt a bit like the times the Ero-Sennin had tried to coax him into meditating. Somewhere along the line, his mind would trail off and find him a new home, in a new world.

**Welcome, Kit. **That voice was familiar. It was a tone that was strangely familiar to the scent of blood and oranges, if that made any sense; it sounded like the Kyuubi.

"Kyuubi? Where am I?" He yawned; there was exhaustion in his bones, he could feel it clear as day. His body rocked, back and forth, trying to stabilize itself, and stay upright. The Kyuubi assisted him in sitting down on the soft grass.

**This is my realm, Kit; the spirit world. **His voice was soft, not at all like what it had been in the real world, all guttural and such, like the angry growl of a wild animal. Here, it sounded like a soft serenade, how odd.

"What am I doing here?" His head felt swoony, as if there were a thousand butterflies fluttering between his ears.

**I told you I would save you, and I did. I'm going to give you a second chance, Kit. A chance to save everyone, and change everything you think was a mistake. **His voice had a tinge of determination to it, something he had learned from Naruto far before his unfortunate "death".

**Before we came here, I was released from the seal. It was designed to do as such in the case you would die.**

"I'm dead?" He questioned, a bit dumbstruck.

**Technically? Yes, but I am sending you back. You're going to make the world a better place. **The Kyuubi had said that as if he truly believed Naruto could do so; though Naruto had his doubts about that.

"Why would you do anything for me? I basically held you hostage for nearly twenty years."

**Let's just say I'm fond of you, kit, and leave it at that. We do not have much time; we have to transfer your body back to the physical world soon. Would you like to go back as your old self? If you don't I could make some... changes, to make your stay more... comfortable. **The Kyuubi seemed incredibly shifty, his eyes rocked back and forth between Naruto, and some unknown space behind him.

"What are you talking about?" Naruto's eyes glazed over, his mind receding from his body, slowly.

**I need to know if you want to go back exactly as you were. Or, if you want things to be different. It might make things easier.**

"Make things different, I don't think I would be able to handle it if I had to relive every moment of my past." As he said that, his vision began to blur, black spots speckled his vision, and tremors wracked his body violently, causing him to empty the acidic contents of his stomach onto the rough grass.

**As you wish, Kit.**

The last thing he saw was nine tails wrapping themselves around his body; and only when he was completely encased did it feel as if someone had sent his flesh aflame.

His screams were not heard, nor were they meant to be.

* * *

He awoke feeling as if a truck that carried large piles of bricks had hit him, and his skin ached as though he had a severe sunburn covering every inch of his body, which made it very painful to move, even the slightest bit. Above him was the smooth face of the Kyuubi.

He was in an unfamiliar room in an unfamiliar house. He tried to question the thousands year old fox, but he was too weak to do so, and it only caused him pain, instead, he let out a few breathy wheezing noises.

The redhead brought a glass of water to his lips, and he drank it as if he was a man dying of thirst. When he was finished, the fox held a warm washcloth to his forehead and told him to sleep. So he did.

When he finally came to, the Kyuubi was nowhere to be found. He forced himself out of the warmth and comfort of the bed, placing his feet firmly onto the tatami mats. He walked slowly past the door, after clinging to the frame for quite a while in his attempt to stabilize himself; his body was very weak, and he was desperately trying to recall where he was, or even simply the last place he had been when he passed out.

He not so gracefully collapsed, and he fell to the floor with a dull thud. His body was in pain, and he quickly squeezed his eyes, as to not call out in pain.

"Kyuubi," He wheezed pathetically, "Kyuubi!" He squeezed his eyes shut tightly as ha heard the sound of feet thumping somewhere in the distance, the vibrations on the floor sent thrums of pain coursing through his aching body, and when he opened his eyes, the red headed demon was standing before him, in his human form, and much bigger then he remembered.

"Naruto," He said, softly. "You shouldn't be out of bed quite yet, you're still very weak." His arms came to wrap around the smaller figure, and her carried him past the door and into the bed once more.

"Where are we?" Naruto asked softly.

"We are in one of my homes; it's yours too now. We're still in the fire country, just much more south of Konoha in a vacation home I own in this world." He chuckled, as if Naruto should have known the answer already.

"How am I not dead?" He wheezed, his voice showing just how weak as his body seemed to be.

The Kyuubi used Medical Ninjutsu to examine Naruto's body as he spoke, trying to quicken the healing process.

"You died, you should be able to remember at least that much. I brought you back, but I needed to change your body a bit, in order to be able to tie your soul back to this world and to help you succeed your new goals; but it seemed to do some temporary damage. That should heal in a few weeks. Basically, I'm giving you a chance to change things, Naruto." The Kyuubi sighed. "Would you like to go back to Konoha when you are better?" At those words, Naruto's head snapped up, meeting the Kyuubi's eyes directly.

"Yes." There was no doubt in those oceanic blue orbs of his, only steel hard determination. "This time, I'm going to save everyone. I won't leave them to die." Kyuubi shook his head.

"It was never your fault, Naruto." Naruto would not hear it; he simply turned his head and moved on with the conversation.

"Do I... do I look any different?" He asked sheepishly. The Kyuubi nodded. Plucking the hand mirror from the dresser beside him, he held it up to Naruto's face.

His hair, once the color of the afternoon sun, was now blood red, his eyes were still the same brilliant blue they use to be, luckily; and he still had the whisker-like marks on his face but they were deeper, more feral looking, even for a small child, as he seemed to be. His skin was pale, like porcelain, it looked good on him with his pudgy, child-like cheeks.

"How old am I?" He questioned.

The Kyuubi answered with a quick muttering of "Six," Naruto's eyes flew wide open, and he looked angrily at the demon fox.

"What the hell, why did you bring me back so young?" Naruto asked, examining his face once more, paying particular attention to his newly formed canines this time, they were more elongated then he remembered and they did not peek through, above his bottom lip.

"I brought you back so young so that you have time to gain strength, before we head back to Konoha, and sign you up for the academy." Naruto grumbled in disagreement.  
"Stupid fox," The Kyuubi ruffled his hair.

Naruto took a sharp intake of breath. "Is my father alive here?" The Kyuubi looked at him solemnly.

"Dead, as is your mother. Here, I am your father I adopted you. The council didn't want it, but in this reality, I'm quite the influential man,"

"You can do that?" Naruto questioned under his breath. The Kyuubi's only response was a curt nod. "Any other changes I should be aware of?"

"Actually, there are quite a few." The Kyuubi pointed out. "When I changed you, I used my own DNA and gave you quite a bit of my chakra and infused them into your body, so you are nearly a full demon now."

"Fuck you!" Naruto yelled, "I'm a freak now, great. This is all your fault." He hissed, angrily. The Kyuubi simply looked at the boys' limp body flatly.

"Don't think this is a burden, you insolent brat. I did this to help you out; you could try being a little more grateful."

"How does this count as 'helping me out'?" Naruto bellowed.

"I'm the one that gave you an entire second chance at life, merged your DNA with my own, and gave you a chance to gain a higher power than any other human." The Kyuubi stated gruffly, his tails swishing back and forth, in their position low to the ground.

"Too bad I won't be human," Naruto muttered dejectedly. In less than a moment, the small, previously blonde, child gave a short, puffed sigh that signaled his defeat. "Can I sleep for a little bit longer?"

"Of course, Kit. I would imagine you are still exhausted from when I transferred you spirit. You chakra coils must also be quite stressed…" The Kyuubi mused, thinking aloud more so than he was talking to Naruto. "I'll leave you to your rest, Kit." With that, Kyuubi walked out of the room with his usual vulpine grace; and Naruto was left to dream of the deaths of all those he had once loved.


End file.
